Johannes schwarz



No. 62 ,566- Patented Apr. 25, I899. J. SCHWARZ.

/ ABDOMINAL BANDAGE.

(Application filed July 12, 1897.)

2 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

W/ Z ZAwSE THE NORRIS PETERS on. PHOTO-LITNO., wAsmNaToN, a. c

No. 623,566. Patented-Apr; 25, I899. J. .SCHWARZ; ABDOMINAL'BANDAGE.

(Application filed July 12, 1897.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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THE NoRms PETERS 0o. Puma-mus wAsnmumN D c NlTE STATES A'rnN'r Fries.

JOHANNES SOIHVARZ, OF MENTZ, GERMANY.

ABDOMINAL BAN DAG E.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 623,566, dated April 25, 1899.

Application filed July 12,1897. Serial No. 644,330: (No model.)

To (tZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHANNES ScHwAnz, a subject of the Grand Duke of Hesse, and a resident of Mentz, 2 Blauer-Stein, in the Grand Duchy of Hesse, German Empire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Abdominal Bandages, of which the following is an exact specification.

This invention refers to abdominal bandages as used for personal wear, and my improvements in such bandages relate to certain combinations and arrangements of parts, as are fully described hereinafter.

The purpose of my improvements is to make the abdominal part proper of the bandage adjustable to the exact shape of the body, and I attain that object in general by first composing the said part of elastic strips or steel bands arranged in pairs and adapted to be moved one along the other, and, second, by connecting said pairs of elastic strips or steel bands movably by other similar strips or bands arranged obliquely to said former ones and adapted to be displaced along the same.

As to particulars, I refer to the accompanying drawings, in which similar letters denote similar parts throughout the different views, and in which- Figure l is a front view of the abdominal part ofmy improved bandage. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section in line 8 9 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 shows a part of a slightly-modified form of construction. Fig. 4 shows again a part of a modified form of construction, and Figs. 5, 6, and '7 are some details shown on an enlarged scale. a

My improved abdominal bandage consists of a number of elastic strips or steel bands a, arranged approximately parallel to each other and hinged all at one end to a piece of leather Z), and of a like number of similar bars or bands at, arranged alternately upon and below said former bars or bands and hinged all at one end to a similar piece, as b, located opposite to the free ends of the said bars or bands a. The free ends of these bars or bands at are provided with keepers a through which pass the bars or bands at, and the free ends of these latter are provided with keepers a through which pass the bars or hands a. I have represented this more distinctly in the and a enlarged view shown in Fig. 5, and it is to be seen from Fig. 6 that in some cases the upper and lower parts of the keeper may be moved one in the direction to the other by means of a screw a so as to press the bar a or a against the bar a or a and fix both bars in their respective relative positions.

Owing to the bars abeingdisplaceable along the bars a, and reversely, the length of the abdominal part of the whole bandage may be adjusted according to any requirement, and to make said part adjustable also in height or breadth I have connected the pairs of bars or bands a a by means of links (Z, connected with each other by keepers d. The latter take around the pairs of bars or bands a a in just the same manner as do the keepers a They are, however, not firmly connected with the bands or bars, but may be displaced along the same, and by doing so the system of quadrangles formed by the links d is expanded or contracted, so that the pairs of bands a a are moved from or against each other for ways of equal lengths.

The middle keeper proper ofthe keepers d is represented separately in Fig. 7. This keeper is provided with a screw-threaded pin 01 having a nut (1 The parts of the respective links d through which said pin passes are furnished with small cogged plates (1 d adapted to take one intothe other. These plates are secured to said parts or links, and all the links 61 may thus be fixed in position by the nut 01 after they have been adjusted as necessary. It is thus to be seen that the abdominal partof the bandage may be adjusted in length as well as in height or breadth, and as to the adjustment in length I call special attention to the fact that the upper and lower pair or pairs of the bars or bands a a may be adjusted independent of the middle one or ones, and reversely, and I am thus enabled to determine also the concavity or convexity of the abdominal part of the bandage according to the exact shape of the body.

In the form of construction shown in Fig.

1 the elastic bars or steel hands a a, serve for holding strips of fabric g. These strips are secured to said bars or bands by means of leather strips g. The latter serve at the same time for keeping the connectingparts (keepers) (Z of the links (I in acertain medium position. The strips of fabric 9 overlap each other in a similar manner as do the slats ofa Venetian blind, and the breadth of said strips is such that they are able to cover the spaces between the pairs of bars or bands even if the latter have been moved away one from the other by the links (Z as far as possible.

The strips 9 form the inner cover of the abdominal part of the bandage, and this cover, owing to its being composed of several parts attached each to one of the pairs of bars or bands a a, may be adjusted in height or breadth together with and by the said pairs themselves. cannot be adjusted also in length, Ihave arranged the flaps 9 which are secu red to the lower side of the leather pieces I) and take below the ends of the strips ,9. Similar but considerably smaller flaps are secured to the upper ends of the pieces I). These flaps serve forconcealing the places of connection of the bars or bands a and a with the pieces I), and they are held in proper position by spring-knobs, the base parts of which are secured to the flaps 9", whereas the head parts are secured to the flaps In cases in which it does not matter whether or not there are some folds in the inner cover of the abdominal part of the bandage I may employ a single piece of fabric g, Fig. 8, instead of several strip-like ones, and instead of using five pairs of elastic bars or steel bands, as in Fig. 8, I may make use of less or more-for instance, seven, as represented in Fig. l. In this case as well as in all other ones I may entirely dispense with the single piece of fabric 9, Figs 3 and 4, or with the separate strips g, Fig. 3, and I may provide instead thereof each of the lower bars or bands at or a with a cover of some smooth'and pliable material, so that the whole structure resembles a kind of grate or lattice. Such forms of construction are especially suited for the summer season or a tropical clime.

The bands or straps that take around the waist and also the means for connecting said bands or straps at the back may be of any desired construction. The adjustment of the pairs of bars or hands a a is effected after the bandage has been put around the body and has been provisionally secured to the same, and the adjustment in length as well as in breadth (or height) is effected in such a manner that every part of the abdominal portion of the bandage fits exactly to the respective part of the body. The relative position of the two parts of each pair a a and of the pairs (1, a with regard to each other may be maintained by the screws M, Fig. 6, and the nut (Z Fig. 7, as has already been described. The adjustability of my improved abdominal bandage is far greater than with any similar bandage known to me, and even bandages that are made to measure do not fit as exactly as my improved one does, because the adapt- As, however, the said strips.

ability of the former is due chiefly to some elastic fabric, but not to the adjustability of the structure holding that fabric.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I

declare that what I claim is- 1. In an abdominal bandage for the human body, the combination with the two front ends of the girdle, of pairs of elastic bars connecting said ends and being adapted to be displaced along each other; means for uniformly changing the distances between said pairs and for fixing them in position after adjustment, for the purpose as described.

2. In an abdominal bandage for the human body, the combination with the two front ends of the girdle, of a number of pairs of bars connecting said ends; each of said pairs of bars consisting of an elastic bar secured at one end to one front end of the girdle, and of a similar bar arranged upon the former and secured at one end to the other front end of the gir dle, and keepers secured to the free ends of said bars and taking around the two bars lying upon each other; and means for uniformly changing the distances between said pairs of bars, for the purpose as described.

3. In an abdominal bandagefor the human body, the combination with the two front ends of the girdle, of parallel pairs of elastic bars connecting said front ends, strips of fabric held by said pairs of bars, and means for uniformly changing the distances between said pairs of bars, for the purpose as described.

4. In an abdominal bandage for the human body, the combination with the two front ends of the girdle, of pairs of elastic bars connecting said two front ends, and links connecting said bars and adapted to be displaced along the same, said links being arranged in pairs and connected movably with each other, for the purpose as described.

5. In an abdominal bandage for the human body, the combination with the two front ends of the girdle, of elastic bars secured at one end to one of said front ends of the girdle, an equal number of similar bars arranged above the former and secured at one end to the other front end of the girdle, and means for movably connecting every two superposed bars so as to allow of the relative displacement of the same; strips of fabric secured to each of said bars and flaps of fabric secured to the front ends of the girdle and extending in the direction to said strips; and means for uniformly changing the distances between said pairs of bars, for the purpose as described.

6. In an abdominal bandage for the human body, the combination with the two front ends of the girdle 0f the belly-scarf, of pairs of elastic bars connecting said two front ends and arranged to allow of their relative displacement; keepers taking around said pairs of bars, and links connecting all said keepers with each other, and forming a system allowing of expansion and contraction so as therespecification inthe presence of two subscribby to increase or decrease the distances being witnesses. tween said pairs of bars, and means for fixing said links as Well as said bars in position 5 after adjustment, for the purpose as de- Witnesses:

scribed. r W. HANSING,

In testimony whereof I have signed this HCH. ANDRES.

JOI-IANNES SCHVARZ. 

